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100% Renewable Energy

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Burning oil, gas and coal has not only polluted our air, water and land for decades; now it’s changing our climate even faster than scientists predicted it would. We can have healthier communities and a livable future for kids growing up today, but to get there, we first need to transform the way we produce and consume energy.

That's why, alongside our national network, we’re calling on communities, colleges and universities, corporations and other businesses, and our state governments to commit to 100% renewable energy.

It’s a big, bold goal, one that would make America a world leader in the race toward a cleaner, healthier future — and it’s a goal that’s 100% possible.

State governments in California and Massachusetts have introduced bills that would require their states to achieve 100% renewable electricity by 2045 and 2050, respectively.

The best part is, the more cities, colleges and companies that go renewable, the faster wind and solar prices keep falling throughout the country — making it even easier for more to achieve 100% renewable energy.

But we can do more, and we must do more to stave off the worst effects of climate change.

Credit: Deepwater Wind

We need to keep building momentum

Recent actions in Washington, D.C., have threatened to slow down and even reverse the progress we’ve made so far.

It’s time to stop letting some slow-moving politicians drag their feet.

It’s time to urge our communities, our colleges and universities, our corporations and businesses, and our state governments to step up and lead.

Join our call, and help your community go 100% renewable.

We need to build a movement. The more people who join our call for 100% renewable power, the more local, state and corporate leaders will step up and take action. And we need more campuses, more communities and more companies to commit to 100% renewable. It will make a difference now and get us on the right track for the future.

Credit: Adam Perri

Why wait?

Once, we were told that the pollution that came from burning oil, gas and coal was the price we had to pay for progress. Those days are over — especially since we know that burning fossil fuels is changing our climate and leaving our children with an uncertain future.

Scientists say we must stop burning virtually all fossil fuels by 2050 in order to spare kids growing up today from the devastating impacts of climate change.

And why should we wait?

Why wait for healthier communities with cleaner air and water when we can have them today?

Why wait until it’s impossible to leave the kids we know and love a safer, healthier tomorrow?

Why wait, when we can start changing the conversation about how we produce and consume energy — so it’s no longer a question of whether we’ll get to 100% renewable power, but how fast?

Why wait, when America has the responsibility, the ingenuity and the will to start leading the world to a 100% renewable future right now?

Credit: Steven Gilbert

We’ve got the power

We’re ready for this. Our national network has done a lot to promote solar, wind and energy efficiency on the state and local levels. We’ve won clean energy policies, from pro-solar initiatives to clean cars programs to renewable energy standards in 22 states, all of which are driving down the costs of wind and solar, and reducing carbon pollution.

With renewable energy, we can have healthier communities right now and a more liveable future for kids growing up today. Together, we can do this. A 100% renewable future based on 100% American-made energy is 100% possible. And it starts now.

Credit: Peter Kirkeskov Rasmussen via Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Issue updates

Wind power is on the rise across America. The United States generates 24 times more electricity from wind power than we did in 2001, providing clean, fossil fuel-free energy that helps the nation do its part in the fight against global warming.

RALEIGH, NC –Solar power is growing so quickly in North Carolina that goals once considered ambitious are now readily achievable, according to a new report by Environment North Carolina Research & Policy Center.

“We can get to 20% solar in North Carolina by 2030 if we just keep our foot on the accelerator,” said Maya Gold, Clean Energy Associate with Environment North Carolina. “That’s a small fraction of what’s possible, but it will make a big difference in the quality of our lives and the future of our planet.”

The group’s researchers found that North Carolina’s solar capacity has grown 127% in recent years. At a fifth of this pace, solar could still generate 20% of North Carolina’s electricity within 15 years— a goal once thought improbable by many.

North Carolina could meet its energy needs by capturing just a sliver of the virtually limitless and pollution-free energy that strikes the state every day in the form of sunlight. With solar installation costs falling, the efficiency of solar cells rising, and the threats of air pollution and global warming ever-looming, solar power is becoming a more attractive and widespread source of energy every day.

Washington, DC—Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced the designation of over 275,000 acres off the coast of North Carolina for offshore wind on August 11.

“We are thrilled that the Obama administration has announced another critical step forward in making this vision a reality for America. There is tremendous potential for producing clean, pollution-free wind energy off of our coasts and over time we can expand wind energy areas much farther. ”

Raleigh, NC – Over the last few years North Carolina has emerged as a national leader in solar power. But according to a new report by Environment North Carolina Research & Policy Center titled “Lighting The Way,” the story might not be as bright as often told. While North Carolina ranks fourth for solar installation in terms of overall capacity, the state ranks tenth per capita, behind cloudier states like New Jersey and Massachusetts. The report emphasizes that it is not availability of sunlight that makes states solar leaders, but the degree to which state and local governments have created effective public policy to help capture the virtually unlimited and pollution-free energy from the sun.